Our Worst Nightmare
by Bright4286
Summary: What would happen if earth's Mightiest Heroes were attacked by their greatest enemies? Will they escape? Will they survive? Mainly Clint-centric, but will include other characters' viewpoints as well. Eventual Clintasha with hints at Pepperony and Fosterson
1. Chapter 1

_A/N_

 _This is my first fanfic on this site, so please be a little forgiving on any errors that I've made. I hope you enjoy it. Just so you know in this story Clint is not married to Laura and does not live in the farmhouse with her and the children. Basically in this story he has no family. I know that sounds kinda harsh but it just works better with the story._

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Chapter One: Hawkeye

The last streaks of sunlight are disappearing over the horizon outside the avengers tower when I finally reach the door. New York is a welcoming sight after spending the last week in a flea infested hole in the ground in Morocco with an Arabic drug lord trying to find out who else was part of his operation. It wouldn't of taken near as long had I been given his identity before I landed in the middle of the desert with no indication of what part of the country he would be in. Fury finally came through about two days in and gave me a name, there wasn't any way to come up with a face because no one knew who he was. After another two days, I'd found, captured, and interrogated him. The last three days were spent arranging for him and myself to be brought back into the U.S to the helicarrier. I debriefed Fury this morning and was cleared to return to the Tower and recuperate. So here I am, standing outside one of the most well known buildings in New York, about rejoin my team of super soldiers, demigods, geniuses, rage monsters, and assassins known as the Avengers. My hand reaches out and goes to pull open the door, but it won't budge. I try again, confused. Tony wouldn't have the door locked when he knew I'd be returning unless it was some prank, which Natasha specifically told him not to pull until at least a day after either of us returns from a mission unless he wants to be maimed.

"Jarvis, is this Tony's doing?" I ask Tony's AI that he built to control the Towers functions. To my surprise, I don't get an answer from the usually talkative British program. "Jarvis?" Still no reply. I decide to take matters into my own hands and walk around to the side of the building. Unknown to Tony, Natasha and I had created a hatch in the wall that led to the inside. It required a thumb scanner that was set to the exact biology of Nat and I, which shield let us use (we definitely didn't steal it, we'd never do that). It is set up in just the right way that even Jarvis doesn't know it's there. I place my thumb to the scanner and sigh when it opens, revealing the lobby of Stark Tower. The minute I step foot inside the large well decorated room, I know somethings off. There's not a single person in the lobby. To anyone else it would seem as if everyone just decided to leave and head upstairs, but there's little things that suggest otherwise. The vase that Peppers grandmother had given her for Christmas last year no longer sits in its place on the table. I walk over to the spot where it should've been and find small shards of glass littering the carpet beneath the table. Reaching down, I pick up a piece and see that there's a red substance on it. At first it looks as if Pepper dropped the vase and cut herself, but then I see it. A small scrap of something is stuck to what I assume is blood, it's skin. Red skin. My mouth twitches as I realize that there's only one person who it could belong to. I quickly go about the room looking for anything out of the ordinary. A painting of the American flag is hanging on the east wall, when it usually goes on the west wall where Steve had put it. When I move it to the side, there's a hole in the wall where something went through it (probably a fist). Something glinting in the light catches my eye to the left and I move to investigate it. One of Peppers earrings is on the floor next to a chair, the diamond lying next to it after falling out on impact. I hear a sound behind me and the hair on the back of my neck bristles. My hand reaches into a compartment on

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the side of my boot to grab the knife I have hidden there and I leap to my feet. In an instant I'm standing face to face with a very frightened, very panicked Pepper Potts who is staring wide eyed at the knife in my hand. My arm relaxes and I put the weapon away.

"Mrs. Potts. What happened?" Her voice comes out in a choked gasp.

"I was coming back from Tony's lab and was going to go out shopping. But when I got to the lobby there were a bunch of men breaking in through the door. I tried to run and alert the team, but they saw me and chased me down. One of them tried to grab me and sent his fist flying through the wall and I fell. I looked up at the door and... and.."

"And what?" I ask

"And the Red Skull was coming in with Loki, Red Hulk, Justin Hammer, M.O.D.O.K and several others. There was an archer and a woman, I think she was Russian. There were a bunch of A.I.M agents and men with knives and guns. They took me to where they were standing and let go of my arms. The Red Skull went into some long speech about finally coming to defeat Captain America and the rest of them each wanted to destroy a certain Avenger. While he was talking, I grabbed the vase off the table and hit him over the head with it. I ran and was able to hide in one of the closets, it was like they didn't even chase me." She had started calming down and was now taking deep breaths. I nodded slowly, taking charge of the situation.

"Ok. Pepper I want you to get out of here. Go to the S.H.I.E.L.D base and contact Nick Fury or Hill and tell them what happened. Get them to send backup and figure out how they got in here in the first place. Got it?" She nods and heads towards the door. I grab her arm and lead her through the hatch I had come through. "Don't tell Tony about it." She nods and exits the lobby. I turn to the elevator. I don't even try to go through it, if Jarvis isn't online there's no way it'll open. The bag on my shoulder weighs heavily against me and I set it open the ground. The zipper is pulled open to reveal my bow and quiver, which I brought on my last mission in case things went south. Luckily, everything went as planned and I only had to loose a few arrows. I walk over to the corner where there's a vent above my head. With a little effort, I leap up to the grate a scoot it out of the way. While holding on with my right arm, I use my left arm to push my bow and quiver in the vent in front of me before climbing nimbly in myself. I crawl through the metal vents for a quarter of a mile, taking many twists and turns. Having navigated these vents all the time, I prefer them rather than walking the halls or using the elevator, I know exactly where to go to get to the living room. The space is a complete wreck. There are bodies everywhere. One man lies on the ground with a knife through his chest, probably curtesy of Natasha, while another is stuck in a hole in the wall, Banner's doing. Some of them look pretty crispy after experiencing Thor's wrath. Slowly, I open the grate and glance around to make certain the room is in fact empty. When I'm sure I'm alone, I drop quietly to the ground and carefully make my way to the door. I put my ear to the door and listen for any sound. When I hear nothing, I crack it open and take a step into the hall. The first thing to do is to make my way to the armory, if what Pepper said was right, there are going to be too many to take on with just what I have on me. Using my S.H.I.E.L.D training, I sneak quietly down the hallway. Suddenly, footsteps sound around the corner and I press myself up against the wall. My shoulders tense as I wait for the culprits to show themselves. I don't have to wait long as an A.I.M agent rounds the corner. He doesn't even have time to react as I reach out and snap his neck. A gun cocks and I have just enough time to drop to the floor before bullets start flying. The projectiles land all around me, but never hit their mark. I hear a click and roll out in front of my attacker and leap into action. The man is trying desperately to reload and has just gotten the magazine inserted when I'm upon him. A right cross hits him in the jaw before he has a chance to go on the defensive. The machine gun drops to the ground and I duck beneath a clumsy jab, landing a solid hit to his ribs in the process. I'm behind him in a matter of seconds and place a well aimed elbow to his spine. My arms reach around his neck and put him in a chokehold, tightening the more he struggles. It only takes a few seconds to cut off his breathing completely and he slumps to the ground. I drop him on the floor and drag the bodies into a closet that is about ten yards away. With them out of the way I'm able to continue on my journey to the armory. I make my way down the hall and turn another corner and the doors to my destination are twenty yards further. When I reach them, I place my ear to the doors and listen to see if the room is occupied. When nothing reaches my ears, I throw the door open and draw my bow. I'm met with a knife flying towards me and a red, white, and blue shield zipping straight towards my face. I duck just in time to avoid the weapons and give my friends a skeptical look. The Black Widow and Captain America are standing in defensive positions guarding the weapons inside the room.

"Nat, Steve! Give a guy a little warning next time! Can I not go one day without almost having my head taken off!" I whisper harshly. They relax when they hear my voice. Natasha walks up to me assesses me for an injuries and, aside from the few I'd acquired from my previous mission, I'm unscathed. When she is satisfied with my health, she leads me into the center of the room where Steve is. Now that I can see the super soldier up close, I can tell he's having trouble. There's a wound to his side that's bleeding sluggishly and his breathing is slightly increased. I lean down and pull a patch out of a compartment in my belt that I save for emergencies. Quickly and carefully, I place it on top of the wound to stop the bleeding. He nods at me gratefully and I give him a tense smile. I turn to Natasha. "What happened?"

"M.O.D.O.K and a bunch of his lackeys somehow got in and attacked the living room whenever Thor, Banner, Tony, and I were inside. Tony didn't have his suit and was injured, so Thor and Banner got him out of there while I held them off. I was outnumbered and had to retreat, that's when I found Steve." The Captain now offers his two cents into the story.

"They blew the doors off the gym while I was working out and I had to fight my way out. I didn't have my shield so one of them was able to get a shot on me. I started making my way to the armory, where I ran into Natasha. We were able to secure the armory after taking care of the guards posted outside the doors. M.O.D.O.K has never been able to pull something like this off." He finishes. I think back to Peppers outburst and quickly add.

"That's because he's not alone. When I got back from the mission Fury sent me on, I tried to get into the Tower. When Jarvis didn't respond, I snuck in. I found evidence of a fight and later found Pepper, who was in the lobby when they broke in." I glance at Steve. "She said it was the Red Skull." I can see his shoulders tense. "Followed by Loki, Red Hulk, and Justin Hammer. It's like someone gave all of our worst enemies the keys to the castle and let them loose." Natasha looks skeptical.

"So they obviously sent Red Skull after Cap, Loki for Thor, Red Hulk is for Bruce, and Justin Hammer is Tony's arch nemesis. M.O.D.O.K must've just been extra precaution. Where does that leave the two of us?" I stare at her for a moment before answering.

"She said there was an archer and a Russian woman, but she wasn't able to put names to them. I didn't have time to get a description so that's all I've got. So as of right now we need to find Thor, Banner, and Stark before they do." I turn to the duo. "Do you have any idea where they could've gone?" Natasha is the first to answer.

"As I said earlier, Tony was injured so they probably tried to go to the MedBay. Most likely there were guards outside of there because they would've figured at least one of us would get hurt eventually. So that would've led to a confrontation and resulted in either a bunch of dead bad guys, or a trashed MedBay. Either way, they would've gotten some sort of first aid. The only other places that have medical supplies are the hangar and Tony's lab. Which means if they saw guards in front of the MedBay, they could've headed towards one of those two places in order to avoid drawing more attention." I nod slowly before replying.

"Ok so that means we could either split up and cover more ground faster, or stay together and move slower but have a better chance of remaining mostly unscathed." I say to the duo. Steve pipes up.

"Normally I'd say we should stick together but the rest of the team could be in grave danger, especially surrounded by people with vendettas against us. I say we split up." He pauses to make sure we agree. We do. "Ok. Clint you can use the air vents to get into the hangar. Natasha, head to Tony's lab and I'll go to the MedBay. If anyone encounters any resistance you should try and avoid any fights, surprise is our best advantage right now. Clint you especially need to stay in the shadows, they don't even know you're here yet. When we've searched our areas, we'll meet in my room. If that is occupied, head to Thor's." With a final nod he adds. "Ok grab any weapons you need and let's go." I walk calmly to the counter and survey the options. After a few minutes of collecting I have several grenades, an array of knives, two pistols, ammo, and an extra bundle of arrows that I save for emergencies. With one last glance at my companions, I haul myself up into the vents.

"Clint, I swear if I have to come and save you I'll kill you myself." Natasha's threat floats up into the vents and I smile, always so emotional. The extra arrows on my back make the air ducts a little tight to maneuver in and I crawl along trying to keep them from scraping against the ceiling. After nearly eight minutes of crawling along in silence, I hear talking up ahead. I crawl forward cautiously and peer through the grating to find the source of the voices. A tall red haired woman is standing with her back to me talking to an A.I.M agent. She's obviously frustrated and is gesturing wildly at the man. With a snarl of rage, she pulls out a pistol and shoots him between the eyes. The sudden turn of events almost makes me flinch. It's then that the woman turns around and I see her face, my heart stops. I watch as she makes her way down the hall and as soon as she is out of sight I continue on my way. Two minutes later I'm outside the hangar doors. A fan inside the ducts prevents me from moving into the room through them, so I'll be forced to use the doors. There are three guards posted just below me and without hesitation, I leap down and land on top of one of them. I take a knife from its sheath on my hip and slit his throat while lashing out with a kick at the next closest agent. It connects with the side of his knee, shattering the bone. He lets out a bone chilling cry before aiming his weapon at my face. In one fluid motion, I leap into the air and wrap my legs around his midsection while grabbing ahold of the last man's neck and use my momentum to throw them to the ground. My grip tightens around the assailant's throat and I can feel his windpipe give beneath the pressure. I release him and quickly land an elbow to the temple of the man I currently have in a triangle, knocking him out cold. Without much effort, I drag the bodies out of the way and lean against the hangar doors. I take a few deep breaths and draw back my bow. My eyes flutter closed for a single moment, imagining what lay ahead, before I throw open the doors and take a defensive stance. Thirty men armed to the teeth stand inside the room, looks of confusion on their faces. For a moment it's as if time itself is frozen, then I let the first arrow fly.

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A/N

so that's the first chapter. Hope you liked it! Reviews are welcome, if you have any requests feel free to add a comment and I'll do my best.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter Two:Black Widow

Clint has just entered the air vents to head to the hangar when I turn to Steve.

"Are you sure you can make it to the MedBay?" I ask eyeing the wound on his side. He nods.

"It'll heal. Super soldier, remember?" Somehow his reassurance does little to convince me and I move towards the door, my weapons of choice already tucked away in my suit. I check the hall for any intruders before walking quietly out the door, but not before I return Cap's shield that still lay in the middle of the floor after it was thrown at Clint. Cautiously, I make my way down the corridor, constantly searching for any signs of a threat. Silence is usually a welcome occurrence in my book, but it covers the building like a blanket. The lack of sound could be either comforting or concerning. It could mean that the others have found a place to lay low and avoid the villains, or they're dead. "Don't think like that" I mentally scold myself. "They could just be knocked out". I creep down the hall and have only gone about thirty yards from the armory when I hear footsteps. On instinct I retract into the shadows, the color of my clothes helping conceal me from any threats. I wait patiently for the owners to come into view and my muscles tense in anticipation. The footsteps becoming louder and louder and louder until they're like the booming of a drum. My body reacts as soon as they clear the edge of the wall. I though a solid punch to the first man's gut, which doubles him over. Using his back as a platform, I launch into the air and wrap my legs around another assailant's neck in a thigh choke. He squirms and struggles for breath for a few seconds, before falling to the ground. I use the momentum to throw myself into a roll and sweep the legs out from underneath the third and fourth man. Reaching into a compartment on my belt, I pull out a specialized garrote that S.H.I.E.L.D designed especially for me. I throw it with deadly accuracy at the first attacker's neck. It wraps around him before shooting one end up rewards the roof, it embeds itself into the ceiling and hoisting the choking man up into the air. A knife suddenly appears in my hand and I stab the closest person to me in the stomach. The other man wraps his arms around my neck to try and choke me. I pull the knife out and twist it so the blade faces behind me, thrusting it into the man's thigh. He shouts in pain and his grip loosens. I take the opportunity to turn and snap his neck. When the last body hits the floor I relax against the wall and take several deep breaths, slowing my heartbeat. Suddenly, one of the radios attached to the men's shoulder crackles to life.

"We're under attack! Captain America is here!"

"What is your position?!" Red Skull shrieks.

"We're just outside the.. Gah!" The agent's voice dies out.

"Report! Where is the Captain!" There's no answer and I can here the Skull's growl of frustration. I smile. Steve is always finding ways to outsmart the old war criminal. I grab the radio, it could come in handy later, and continue on towards Tony's lab and am soon standing at the stairs that lead down to his place of refuge. Cautiously, I edge down the steps and peek my head out past the wall to look through the glass. No sooner have I done this than I am greeted with an obnoxiously loud shout.

"Ah Lady Natasha! We are most joyful that you have made your presence known! Stark, Banner, you may come out now! It is not my brother!" The thunder god's voice echoes loudly through the small room. I watch as Tony and Bruce appear out from behind the counter and trudge towards the Asguardian. Stark lets out an exasperated sigh and glares at Thor.

"Ok Point Break no need to shout. We are the only ones here." The billionaire has a thick bandage wrapped tightly around his chest and shoulder, where he had been hit with a blast from one of A.I.M's customized guns when all of this began.

"Good to see none of you are dead. Steve and Clint are at the hangar and the MedBay, but all of us are meeting back in Steve's room or Thor's is that fails. So if the three stooges would please follow me." I lead them out of the lab and up the stairs into the hallway. The second I step foot onto the tile, the radio I stole from the agent turns on.

"The hangar is being attacked. Clint Barton has entered the building! We need backup now!" I let out an angry sigh.

"Hawkeye I swear." I turn to the boys. "The three of you will go to Steve's room and wait for the Captain, Clint, and I to return. If you run into any intruders, light 'em up." Thor speaks up.

"But Widow, wouldn't we be of more use assisting you?" I shake my head.

"As of right now, I know where every member of the team is. And I'd like to keep it that way. We're stronger if we're together and it's not gonna stay that way if we all go running off around the building. Do as I said." Without checking to see if they obey, because I know they will, I stalk off towards the hangar. I'm nearly there, when I hear a voice.

"I don't care what your stupid plan is. Clint Barton is mine!" It only takes me a second to recognize the owner. To confirm my suspicions, I poke my head out just enough to see the two people arguing. Just as I thought, the archer is standing yelling at the Red Skull.

"Watch your tongue! If it wasn't for me, you wouldn't even have the chance to destroy him!" You could cut the tension with a knife. Finally, the archer backs down and storms off into another room. The Red Skull follows suit and I continue on my way to the hangar. I walk along for another few minutes before the silence of the hall is wracked with an explosion. My legs are moving before I even realize it and I'm running straight towards the hangar doors, which are wide open. When I'm close enough I'm finally able to see the scene before me. Bodies of A.I.M agents litter the floor with arrows in them and my partner is running along the rafters, bow drawn and firing. Without hesitation I rush into the room and use my Widow's Bite to incapacitate the man closest to me. After sending a kick to the temple of the next, I pull out my pistols and place one in each hand. The familiar weight is comforting in my hands as I fire round after round at the villains. I hear an arrow whiz past my head and I turn to see another agent fall dead behind me. I smile slightly before snapping the neck of the man who was trying to sneak up on me. By now most of the agents have realized that Hawkeye is no longer alone and some have turned towards me, weapons raised. It doesn't matter too much, they won't be able to hit me anyway. I sprint towards them, ducking their shots occasionally, and land a solid hit to the first, second, and third in line before the radio buzzes once again.

"Keep Hawkeye busy. The less Avengers we have trying to foil our plans, the better." The Red Skull snarls into the comm. I think the message is over, when another voice comes over the line.

"Skull, we found Stark. He was trying to contact S.H.I.E.L.D using an encrypted line in his room. No sign of anyone else."

"Perfect." The Red Skull replies. Suddenly his voice comes over the intercom that is usually saved for Jarvis. "Hello Avengers! You are making things very difficult for me by hiding, but I can fix that. If you ever want to see Tony Stark alive again you will meet me in his lab and surrender yourselves. If you do not, Tony Stark will die. You have exactly twenty minutes to comply." The second the feed ends there's a huge explosion and I turn to the cause. One of the A.I.M agents shot some sort of laser at Hawkeye, disintegrating the rafter beneath his feet. I watch as Clint falls through the hole and plummets towards the ground. He twists in midair and shoots a grappling arrow at the ceiling. It embeds itself in the surface and he goes sailing through the sky, trying to make it to the ground safely. He's nearly there when another laser shot breaks the cable that he's swinging from. Everyone in the room has diverted their attention to the archer and I take the opportunity to take out every single person standing between me and my partner. There's a shout and I watch as Barton's momentum throws him into the air, straight through the giant glass window that leads to the street over two hundred feet below.

"Hawkeye!" I scream.

 _A/N sorry for the short chapter, I will try to make the next chapters longer_


	3. Chapter 3

_A/N first off I wanna thank TheAnonymousUsual for all your advice. It helped me out a lot and I will be sure to remember it in the future._

 _Disclaimer: I don't own the Avengers or any of their characters._

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Chapter Three: Hawkeye

"Join S.H.I.E.L.D they said. You'll see the world they said." I grumble under my breath. Conveniently there's nothing in S.H.I.E.L.D's initiation speech about evil Nazi dictators and gods of Mischief. I sigh. Laser blasts land all around me as A.I.M uses their customized weapons to try and shoot at me, they're all terrible shots by the way. When I came home from that mission in Morocco today I was planning on relaxing at the archery range for a little while, not getting used as target practice for a bunch of Hydra scum. I fire an explosive arrow at the feet of several agents, where it detonates and sends them flying. I run across the rafters, which I had climbed up to shortly after entering, with an ease that was perfected from years in the circus and fire another arrow in the quickly dwindling number of Hydra followers. I've only got eight of them left when reinforcements come barging in, someone must've radioed for backup. The newly entered agents all begin their assault at the same time. It's such a coordinated attack, they almost hit me. Almost. I leap the ten feet from my current position to the next rafter and sprint along the edge, firing as I go. My fingers are moving at a rapid pace as I release arrow after arrow into the fray, never missing a shot. Red catches my eye and I turn to see Natasha come running in and immediately goes to work taking care of some of the attackers on the ground. A smile reaches my face when I see her Widows Bite on her opponents. A few more men advance towards her. "You're gonna regret that." I say under my breath just before she attacks, kicking one in the head and shooting the others. One man is coming up behind her and an arrow is soon embedded in his chest. It's not that she can't take care of herself, I've got one more thing to tease her about now. Most people wouldn't dare mess with her but being her partner has privileges, like she won't kill me if I mess with her. She'll never admit it, but I think she actually likes it. I turn away from my partner and continue bombarding Hydra with trick arrows. A couple of them find themselves encased in ice after I launch a particular freeze arrow that Stark modified for me. I pull back another projectile and am about to fire when Red Skull's voice comes over the speakers in the building.

"Hello Avengers! You are making things very difficult for me by hiding, but I can fix that. If you ever want to see Tony Stark alive again you will meet me in his lab and surrender yourselves. If you do not, Tony Stark will die. You have exactly one hour to comply." For a moment I stand there, unsure of what to do. I glance at Nat and can tell she's thinking the same thing. It's as if the whole room is frozen, no one moving and no one speaking. Suddenly I hear a noise to my left and I turn just in time to see a particularly large laser blast coming my way. I don't have time to react as it strikes the rafter beneath, disintegrating the metal beneath me. My legs go straight through the hole and I find myself falling down towards the ground. A shout escapes me and turn around so I'm facing the ceiling and shoot a grappling arrow. It sticks into the roof and I go swinging in a big arch in the direction of the Quinjet. I'm nearly there when, by some freak accident, one of them actually manages to cut the grappling line with a laser. With the loss of tension provided by the rope, I'm thrown way off course. When I come over the top of the jet I'm able to see where I'll land. The giant glass windows that line Avengers Tower are looming in front of me and I'm heading straight for it. In a split second decision I use my hands to cover my face as I go sailing through glass. I can feel the jagged shards ripping through the skin on my arms. My eyes open, I'm not even sure when I closed them, and I see the New York street some two hundred feet below me. With all my strength I throw my body weight back towards the window and reach out with my hand. At first I don't think I'm going to make it but, to my relief, my fingers curl around the sill. I pull myself up slightly so that my whole hand is gripping the window frame. The remaining glass slices through my palm, causing blood to drip down my forearm. The red substance makes the already slick window sill even harder to hold on to and I can feel my fingers slowly slipping off. A pained grunt escapes me as I try to haul myself back up to the floor, which causes the glass to dig even deeper into my hand. I try with all my might to get back up and am nearly there when my left hand slips, sending me sliding back down and I'm now hanging by just one arm. My shoulder aches from the sudden strain that is being put on it and a steady stream of blood is flowing from my palm down to my bicep. A loud crash sounds above me and I watch as an A.I.M agent goes flying through the window, that until a second ago was still fully intact, next to me. I watch as Natasha appears and reaches out to grab me. It's at that exact moment that my grip gives out and I start to fall. A yell escapes me before I stop with a jolt. I look up to see my partner holding me up by my hand, keeping me from careening down to the street below and becoming a splatter on the pavement. Widow begins pulling me up and I do my best to help her, which isn't easy considering I'm basically trying to walk up the side of a building. When I'm finally sitting back on solid ground and not dangling two hundred feet in the air, I survey the room. Whatever agents had remained when I went through the window were thoroughly taken care of by Tasha and the two of us are now the last living people in the room. I stand to my feet and begin heading in the direction of Tony's lab before she stops me. I give her a quizzical look and she quickly responds.

"We need to do something about your hands before you go barging in there arrows blazing." I shrug her off.

"We can deal with that later, right now we need to go and get Stark before his big mouth gets him killed." I start to leave but she's having none of it.

"Tony is a smart guy, he'll keep himself alive long enough for us to get there. You are not going to do him any good if you bleeding out everywhere." She fixes the Black Widow glare on me and I reluctantly agree. My partner heads to a supply box where we keep some of the medical equipment and soon returns with antiseptic and bandages. First she pours the antiseptic over my hands and then tightly wraps them in the bandages, but not tight enough that they keep me from shooting my bow. Satisfied, she begins to walk away but I grab her arm.

"There's something I need to tell you." She gives me a quizzical look before nodding, telling me to continue. I take a deep breath and close my eyes. They are open again in an instant and I say. "It's Madame B, she's here." I watch as my partner tenses and then her face hardens. Madame B was in charge of turning Natasha into an assassin, she was part of the Red Room. She shakes her head and looks straight at me.

"There's something you need to know. Trickshot is here too. I heard him talking with Red Skull, he wants to kill you." My hands clench into fist. Trickshot, my mentor. He took me under his wing when my brother Barney and I joined the Carson Carnival of Traveling Wonders. Trickshot, the man who betrayed me when I wouldn't help him commit crimes. My partner senses my unease. "We'll take care of them later, right now we have to go and save Stark." She says and leads me into the hall. We start heading towards Tony's lab, but an idea comes to me.

"If we can make it to the control room we could shut off the lights and find an access point for S.H.I.E.L.D." I whisper. My companion nods and we alter our course slightly so that we're now heading in the direction of the control room. In no time at all we are standing just off to the side of the door that is between us and our destination. Nat stands off to my right by the corner, making sure no one is coming. I peak through the small window in the door and am met with a gun barrel pointed at me through the glass. I have just enough time to yell the words "look out" to my partner and duck out of the way before the bullets start flying. They go straight through the door and litter the hallway walls with holes. I turn and see Nat dive behind the wall for cover. The door opens and a man walks out carrying an AR-15. Lucky for me because on this specific model he has to pull the trigger each time instead of just holding it down and I'm able to use this fraction of a second opportunity to stab an arrow in his chest. He goes down and I use his body for cover as I shoot the remaining men inside the control room. "We're clear." I say. When I don't get a response I turn to look for Black Widow. My partner is nowhere in sight. Confused I head to the last spot I saw her, which was when she dove behind the wall. "Nat?" I come around the corner just in time to see Loki plunge his scepter through the girl in question's chest. My mouth falls open as I watch my partner, my friend, fall down to the ground with a hole in her chest. Loki smiles at the sight before he just disappears.

"Natasha!" My scream echoes down the halls and I sprint as fast as I can to my fallen comrade. I drop down beside her and place my hands over the wound even though I know it's no use. Her breath is coming in quick gasps and I can see her strength fading.

"Goodbye Clint." She whispers before her eyes close. My heart stops.

"Nat?! No you can't die! I haven't given you permission to die! Nat!" She doesn't respond and I let out a strangled cry. Loki must've alerted A.I.M to the situation because I'm now surrounded by their men. A single tear falls down my cheek and I hastily wipe it away before any of them notice. Two agents grab on to my arms and stand me up. They try to restrain me and I fight back, struggling against their hold, but there are just too many. My hands are tied behind my back and I'm drug through the halls in the direction of Tony's lab, my former partner's body left in a bloody heap on the ground. After several minutes of agonized silence we reach the stairs that will take us to where Tony is being held. I plant my feet and refuse to move. I'm not going to surrender to these people in hopes that they'll just let all of us go free. I throw my head back and hit one of the men holding me in the nose, hopefully breaking it, and kick the legs out from under the other. A pair of hands lands on my back and before I can stop it, I go tumbling down the stairs. My hands are still secured behind my back and I can't keep myself from painfully banging down every step until I hit the ground with a thud. A cough erupts from me and I start to stand when someone grabs me by the hair. They're standing behind me and I can't get a look at their face. The figure drags me across the floor and throws me down to the ground. I look to my right and see Thor, Steve, and Bruce next to me, all unconscious. A kick connects with my side and a voice is suddenly speaking in my ear.

"Long time no see, Clint." Trickshot. He hisses my name and stands back up from the kneeling position he'd taken beside me. I look up at my former mentor and it takes everything I have not to spit on his shoes. His eyes flicker to the left slightly and it takes me a moment to realize what he's looking at. My hands are still tied up in front of me and are now stretched out, clearly showing the bandages. With a snarl he stomps down on top of the injured appendage. A bite back a yell of pain and he smiles.

"You can't hide your pain from me, Barton. We know each other much too well for that." Without warning, his foot comes flying at my face and I'm thrown into unconsciousness.

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 _A/N thank you so much for reading chapter three of Our Worst Nightmare! If you have any requests or advice please feel free to leave a comment. Reviews are welcome_


	4. Chapter 4

_A/N thanks to everyone who is taking time to read this story. I hope you enjoy it_

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Chapter Four: Hawkeye

I wake up slowly. My body is jolting around involuntarily and it takes me a moment to realize someone is shaking me. I open my eyes and the world slowly comes into focus. Bruce is kneeling beside me, anger and worry written across his face, shaking me trying to wake up. When he sees my eyes open he removes his hands from my shoulders and sits back on his heels. Slowly, I sit up and lean against the wall behind me. Steve, who I thought was still knocked out, speaks up.

"Hawkeye are you alright." I nod.

"I've had worse. How about you guys?" Steve gets a grim look on his face, but he answers without hesitation.

"None of us are too badly injured, just a few minor things. Somehow Hydra got ahold of some seriously high tech restraints that even Thor and I can't break, they were probably given to Red Skull by Loki. Banner was injected by some sort of formula that prevents the other guy from making an appearance and they blasted Tony's suit with an EMP. Since he was still inside the suit when it happened, he can't get out of his armor without causing him a great amount of pain. The only person we do t know the whereabouts of is Black Widow. No one has heard from her. Tony, Thor, and Bruce went to meet with her in my room but she never showed." My mood immediately darkens when I remember the fate of my partner. It takes me a moment to realize that the rest of them wouldn't of known about it because they were already here when it happened. I close my eyes and take a deep, shuddering breath. After a few seconds I open them again, the two of them are staring at me. When I finally work up the courage and open my mouth to speak, the door to the lab opens and Loki struts in. The man responsible for Nat's death flashes his best smile at me and I completely lose it. I leap to my feet and launch myself at the man before anyone in the room even has time to blink. My knee connects with his stomach and he doubles over. Before I can do any more damage several Hydra agents come up and grab me by the arms. I struggle fiercely against their hold and kick out with my leg at the man on my right. It connects with his kneecap and he howls in pain before letting go of me and dropping to the floor, clutching his injured leg. With that arm now free I drop to the ground, bringing the second man down with me, and bring my restrained arms from behind me to in front of me by looping them under and around my legs. I elbow the remaining man in the temple and his eyes roll back in his head. I stand to my feet and swing both of my hands in a wide arch to hit Loki straight in the face. My arms wrap around his neck and I maneuver behind him to put him in a chokehold. At first he tries to pull my hands off of his neck but I just tighten my hold. Suddenly his arms come back and grab me by the shoulders, before I know it I'm flying over his head and I land on my back, hard, at his feet. Loki takes a moment to catch his breath and I can feel the anger coming off of him in waves. He leans down so that he's speaking in my ear.

"You forgot something, you pathetic mortal. I have the strength of an Asguardian and you are just a mere human." With that he grabs my arm and pulls me to my feet. Without warning he hurls me across the room and I go crashing into the wall. I can hear the other Avengers shouts of anger, but they are unable to help me because they are still restrained and are now surrounded by most of the guards in the room. A cough escapes me and I start to get up, when a hand grabs me by the hair and pulls me to my feet. Loki shoves me up against the wall and releases his hold. Before I can do anything to protect myself a right hook connects with my jaw and a copper taste fills my mouth. I lean against the wall slightly and the god of mischief comes up to me. His dagger suddenly appears out of nowhere in his hand and he presses the blade to my throat. His voice is full of venom when he speaks.

"Tell me Barton, how does it feel to be beaten? How does it feel to fail?" He presses the knife harder against my throat until a small trickle of blood flows down my neck. "To know that you could've saved your partner if you had just paid a little more attention to your surroundings?" Anger boils in me and I spit blood in the Asguardian's face. A frustrated growl leaves him as he wipes the substance from his face. "You'll pay for that you mewling quim." His hand reaches out and slams my head into the wall. I fall to the ground, fighting unconsciousness, and glare at the man. He slowly walks to the other side of the room where Trickshot is standing, anger written all over his features. My vision is blurry and I shake my head to try and clear it up. Two agents come over to me and half walk half drag me back to where my teammates are. They dump me unceremoniously on the floor and a grunt of pain escapes me. The other Avengers stare at me in shock unsure of what to say. Steve is the first to speak.

"Clint what were you thinking? You can't just rush at Loki without some sort of plan and hope to beat him alone." Thor joins in.

"He is right Hawkeye. An Asguardian's strength and tactics are nearly impossible to beat alone, even for a trained assassin. Why did you attack him?" I slowly sit up to face my team and look at each one of them in turn before speaking.

"Because he killed Natasha." Their shocked expressions meet my gaze and for a long time silence fills the room. I look down at the floor, unable to stand their stares any longer. Tony breaks the quiet.

"What happened?" My shoulders tense and I take a deep breath before answering.

"We were heading to the control room to try and contact S.H.I.E.L.D. When we got there there were people inside and they started shooting at us. I moved out of the way of the door and Nat dove behind the wall. It was pretty easy to take out the shooter but when I looked for my partner I couldn't find her. I went around the corner and saw Loki stab her with his scepter. I got there as fast as I could, but there was nothing I could do. She died soon after I arrived and I was brought here." No one talks for a long time, they're all trying to come to terms with the news.

"I am sorry Barton. I should've been more aware of my brother's whereabouts." Thor's normally booming voice is nothing more than a whisper.

"It's not your fault. Loki chose to do what he did and there's nothing you could've done to stop it." A cough erupts from my throat and its followed by another and before long I'm hacking uncontrollably. Pain shoots up my side from the broken ribs that Loki probably gave me. When it finally subsides I sink back against the wall and take a few deep breaths. My head aches slightly from the wound that I sustained during the fight with Thor's brother and I can feel the blood sluggishly dripping down the aback of my neck. I lean forward and look back at the spot where my head was resting against the wall and, sure enough, it's now stained red. Bruce sees this too.

"Clint how bad is it?" I shrug my shoulders.

"Nothing major, like I said I've had worse." Tony scoffs.

"If you've had something worse than an Asguardian beat down then you need to find a new hobby." I turn and glare at the billionaire who has averted his gaze to the ceiling tiles. I'm about to retort when an explosion rocks the room. A grenade rolls across the floor to the feet of a bunch of A.I.M agents where it explodes. Instead of throwing shrapnel everywhere it hardens into a glass-like substance which traps the agents inside of it. Steve uses the distraction to his advantage and sweeps the legs out from underneath the nearest villain, sending him crashing to the ground. Another explosion sends Trickshot and Loki flying across the room. Suddenly, a handheld device lands at my feet and I look at it. It only takes a moment for me to realize the marking on it match the ones on our restraints and I quickly go to work. In no time I have myself free and I move over to Steve, who was sitting closest to me, and release him before moving on to Banner and Thor. The three of them start fighting the agents closest to us, trying to make a way for us to escape. When I get to Tony I'm unsure of what to do because he's still stuck in his armor. His voice breaks through the noise.

"There's a button on the back of my knee that will release the suit and I'll be able to get out."

"Why didn't you say something earlier?" I ask as I search for the button.

"I couldn't tell you earlier because then our worst enemies would know about it and that wouldn't be much fun in a fight." I finally find what I'm looking for and soon Tony is free from his suit. We stand and I spot our weapons being guarded by M.O.D.O.K. Without hesitation I sprint through the fray in that direction. I duck beneath punches and deal out a few of my own when it's necessary. When I get within ten feet of M.O.D.O.K, I drop to the floor and use my moment to slide underneath him. I grab one my electric arrows from my quiver, which had been lying on the ground behind him, and jab it into his suit. He seizes up and falls to the ground, knocked out. I grab my bow and quiver and Cap's shield before running back to Tony.

"Get this to Steve!" I yell as I hand him the shield. My friend nods before taking off towards Captain America. I spot Thor's hammer but it's encased in some sort of force field that prevents me from getting to it. My quivers weighs comfortably on my back and I grab an explosive arrow before releasing it. I watch as it lands right at the Red Skull's feet and blows him sky high, well as high as the sky can get when your inside a building. I hear a gunshot near the door and I turn to see an A.I.M agent fall to the ground with a bullet hole right between his eyes. I search for the source of the shot and it only takes me a moment to find it. A familiar flash of fiery red hair meets my eyes and my heart skips a beat.

"Natasha?" I breath. My suspicions are confirmed when I see my partner leap though the air and use her Widows Bite to take out another man. I stare in shock for a few moments until Steve shouts at me.

"Clint come on!" I turn to see the rest of the Avengers exiting through the door where Natasha stands just out of their line of sight. Without thinking I run straight towards her and help her take out the men closest to her before grabbing the girl's arm and dragging her out the door. Everyone stares at her in shock for a minute before she shouts.

"What are you guys looking at?! Let's go!" We take off at a sprint and keep running until we reach Steve's room. The six of us enter the room and close the door before we all turn to look at Natasha. "What is with you guys? You look like you've seen a ghost." I stare at her for a moment longer before answering.

"I thought you were dead."

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 _A/N well that's chapter four hope you enjoyed it_


	5. Chapter 5

_A/N thank you to everyone who is taking the time to read this story. Disclaimer I dont own the avengers or any other characters in this story._

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Chapter Five: Steve

The six of us are all standing in my room after escaping from Tony's lab staring at the Black Widow who, until a few minutes ago, we all thought was dead.

"I thought you were dead." Clint breathes. Natasha turns to him, confused.

"What? Why?"

"I saw Loki kill you." The archer is clearly trying to figure out how he had been fooled into thinking his partner was dead. Thor suddenly speaks up.

"My brother is a master of sorcery. Perhaps he made you see something that wasn't actually there, he has pulled the same trick on me many times." Clint nods slowly.

"If you weren't with Clint, then where were you?" I ask suddenly. Natasha answers quickly.

"Whenever Clint and I were ambushed at the control room I went behind a wall for cover.

I was just about to go back and help Clint when I saw the Red Skull walking down the hallway. I knew Barton could handle the people in the control room alone so I decided to follow him. He went into the rec. room and pulled something out of his pocket before placing it on the wall. When he left I went to see what it was. At first I couldn't tell but after a few minutes if examining it I realized that it was some type of bomb. It was unlike anything I've ever seen. There weren't any wires or a timer or anything, otherwise it was nearly identical to what we have on earth. I'm guessing that it can be remote detonated from outside the building. I tried to disable it but I couldn't figure it out so I tried to pry it off the wall. The thing wouldn't budge, it was like it was anchored into the very foundation of the building. After a couple minutes of trying, and failing, to remove it I decided I'd better get back to Hawkeye and tell him what I'd found. Unfortunately I got there just in time to see him being taken away by A.I.M. I knew that they'd be taking him to the lab, where I figured the rest of you were also, so I went back to the armory to grab a few things. When I got everything I needed I took a page out of Clint's book and went up I to the air vents. I exited the vents when I got to the stairs and threw a specialized grenade into the room. You guys know what happened after that." I take a moment to fully comprehend what she's said before speaking.

"You said the Red Skull put a bomb in the rec. room?" She nods. "He wouldn't put it there for no reason. So that means that there are probably other bombs hidden throughout the building and whenever he finishes up here he's going to blow Avengers Tower sky high." I get several nods of affirmation from my fellow teammates. "We have to find those bombs and figure out a way to shut them down. On top of that we have to keep from being recaptured by our enemies and put them away at a S.H.I.E.L.D prison for good." The room is silent for a few moments before Bruce speaks up.

"Cap is right. We have to stop them before they do something too drastic to get their revenge on us. I say we split into teams. Some of us go after the bombs while the rest go after the Red Skull and his companions. We have a better chance of stopping them that way instead of all of sticking together. I know it's risky, but it's our only shot at defeating them."

"I agree with Bruce." Tony's voice echoes through the quiet room. I turn my attention back to Black Widow.

"You said the bombs didn't look like anything you'd ever seen on earth. Do you think maybe Loki could've gotten them from one of the other nine realms or is this one of A.I.M.'s projects?" She takes a minute to think.

"It could be something from Asguard but I'm putting my money on A.I.M. They're technology is becoming more advanced than what we're used to seeing and with Loki's help they could've built this in a heartbeat." I nod.

"Ok now we just have to figure out how to disable it and who will be the ones doing it." Everyone in the room agrees and Hawkeye adds his two cents.

"Well we're going to need more people fighting the bad guys than finding bombs. So I say two of us look for bombs and the other four take on the villains." He waits for us to nods before continuing. "Bruce would be helpful with the bombs but he's the only one who can take on Red Hulk so I say he does that." Bruce interrupts.

"Clint, they gave me some sort of drug that prevents me from transforming into the Hulk." Everyone is silent for a moment. Tony lets out an excited yelp.

"Banner remember when General Ross shot you with that dart a while back? It had the same effect but when you got angry enough you counteracted the effects and we able to hulk-out! Maybe this has the same weakness!" Bruce's eyes light up with understanding and he nods. I step into the conversation.

"So that settles that, Bruce will be there to subdue the Red Hulk. Thor, we'll need your help in there also. Tony do you think you could figure out those bombs?" The billionaire nods. "Ok. I won't be of much help with the bombs if they're as sophisticated as you say they are. Does anyone else have any experience with some type of explosives?"

"When I was in the army I met a guy from the bomb disposal unit and he taught me a few things when we had some downtime. I remember enough of it that I could still disarm one." Clint replies. I nod.

"Well that settles it. Clint and Tony will locate and disable the bombs while the rest of us stop the bad guys." As soon as the sentence leaves my mouth Hawkeye and Iron Man head out in search of the bombs. I turn to the remaining members of my team. "The first thing we need to do it figure out where everyone is. Then we can focus on taking them down. Any ideas?" Thor is the first to reply.

"My brother has encased my hammer in magic and will not let it leave his sight. He is most likely still in Stark's lab but I am unsure of where the others might be."

"They're probably all near each other so that if one of them is attacked they can alert the others and they would be able to get there in time to try and capture us. So if Loki is still in the lab I say we search that area and move on from there." I nod in agreement.

"Ok. Let's move." Everyone immediately begins moving out through the door of my room and we make our way quietly down the hall, well as quiet as we can get Thor stomping around. We walk along in silence, each of us keeping a keen eye out for any sign of our opposition. The first few minutes pass without any incident and before long we're within two hundred yards of Tony's lab. I'm the first to hear a voice echoing down the hall.

"We don't have much time left. If we are going to get our revenge on the Avengers and live to tell the tale we must do it quickly!" Loki's voice is filled with an urgency no one has ever heard come from the God of mischief.

"I understand that! Do you think I'm happy with just standing here doing nothing? That imbecile M.O.D.O.K is trying to come up with a way to track the Avengers so we can destroy them. Unfortunately he's so incompetent that by the time he is able to track them it may already be too late." Red Skull's German accent thickens in his anger, making it difficult to understand him.

"What does he mean 'before it's too late'?" Bruce asks, concerned.

"I don't know. But whatever it is it doesn't sound good." I answer. Red Hulk's deep voice suddenly penetrates the few moments of quiet.

"Why can't we just smash them and be done with it?!" Loki scoffs.

"Because, you pathetic mortal, if we try to beat them without a plan we'll definitely be defeated. Surely you've learned that by now considering all the times they've thrown you in jail." We've come up to the corner that will lead us to Tony's lab, and the three criminals standing at the front doors of the place. I turn quietly to my team.

"Ok Natasha and I will handle the Red Skull, Thor get Loki, and Bruce... I think it's time for you to get angry." A smile creeps onto the doctor's face.

"I'm always angry." And with that, his body is overtaken by green skin and bulging muscles that are better known as the Hulk. With a grin he takes off down the hallway towards his red impostor and the rest of us follow suit. I throw my shield at Skull and, catching him off guard, it knocks the Nazi on his back. Within seconds I'm upon him, throwing punches and dodging hits while Black Widow fires off her Widows Bite. Thor is currently in a wrestling match with his brother who is attempting to use magic to overpower the blonde. And Hulk, well Hulk is smashing. A lot. I throw my shield up to block a blow aimed for my face and throw in one of my own, connecting solidly with my opponent's jaw. A satisfied smile reaches my face but it disappears just as quickly as it had come. The three villains are suddenly joined by Madame B, Justin Hammer, and M.O.D.O.K. The six look immensely pleased with themselves at the turn of events. Hammer is clad in what looks like a knockoff Iron Man suit with his logo on the front, he must've come up with this design because he knew he wouldn't be able to take on the Avengers without a little bit of help. All at once the six resume their attacks. Now instead of just dealing with Red Skull I also have to fight M.O.D.O.K. Thor is now battling both Loki and Justin Hammer while Natasha is in combat with Madame B. No one else dared go near the Hulk because he's, well, the freaking Hulk. I block a punch from Red Skull only to be shocked with a bolt of electricity by M.O.D.O.K. I throw my shield at the man/ machine and run at the Skull. I leap up into the air and just before my fist connects with the nazi's head, my shield bounces off M.O.D.O.K and lands in my hand. The hard metal clangs loudly when it makes contact and I watch as Schmidt stumbles backwards. I turn to see the other Avengers coming out on the winning end of their fights. Hammers suit is in pieces on the floor, the man in question is lying in a heap in the corner very dazed, and Thor is currently holding Loki up by his shoulders. Natasha has Madame B in a chokehold and Red Hulk is stuck in a giant hole in the wall. I move to apprehend M.O.D.O.K and Red Skull when Hammer's watch beeps.

"We're out of time!" He screams from his spot on the floor. Before any of us has time to react green magic fills the room and I watch as our adversaries disappear before our eyes.

"Loki!" Thor bellows. I'm about to try and calm the raging Asguardian down when Tony comes careening down the hallway. He lands unceremoniously on the floor in the middle of us and jumps to his feet.

"We've gotta get out of here now! The bombs are gonna go off at any minute! Come on!" Not having to be told twice, the four of us follow him and we sprint down the halls to the stairs. We run down the stairs and by the time we reach the lobby are all out of breath and panting. I burst through the door and out into the street followed by Tony, Thor, Bruce and Natasha. We're about thirty yards from the Tower before any of us stop running. I immediately start getting any civilians away from the danger zone and have it just about clear when Widow's voice reaches my ears.

"Where's Clint?" This causes me to look around and, sure enough, the archer is missing. Natasha turns to Tony. "Where's Hawkeye?" The billionaire stutters.

"He told me to get you guys out. He said not to let you go after him. He made me promise to..." Natasha cuts him off.

"Where is he!" Tony withers under her glare. It only takes a few more seconds for him to comply.

"He's still inside. He wanted to try and disarm the bombs to make sure he kept the rest us safe and any civilians nearby."

"What?!" The Black Widow angrily begins running back towards the Tower. Tony flies into the air and lands in front of the Russian.

"He made me promise to keep you safe and not to let you come after him. I'm not about to go back on my word." The girl screams in anger.

"I don't care about your word! I care about my partner!" She sprints past Iron Man and is twenty yards from the building when it explodes. Natasha is blown backwards and lands on the pavement. "Clint!" She screams.

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 _A/N well that's chapter five sorry if it took me a little longer than normal to post this I've been super busy. I was thinking that the next chapter I could have the fight between the villains from everyone's perspective. It would all be in the same chapter, but it'd be broken up in between POV's. Do y'all think that's a good idea? Please leave a comment and tell me what you think_


	6. Chapter 6

_A/N thank you for taking the time to read this story! Disclaimer: I own nothing but my imagination_

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Chapter Six: Hawkeye

Tony and I have just left Cap's room to locate and disable the bombs.

"I think we should start in the rec. room since that's where Nat said she saw Red Skull plant one of the bombs. If we can figure out how to shut it down then we can go and find the rest of them." I said quietly. Tony nodded his head in agreement.

"Not if we figure it out. WHEN we figure it out, I'm a genius remember?" We creep down the hallway in silence after that, not wanting to draw any unwanted attention to ourselves. The entrance to the rec. room looms before us, the sun shining through the windows casts a gloomy shadow on our faces. At first I'm hesitant to enter. If we go in we have to try and disable the bomb and if we can't, then we've failed everyone. But if we don't go in then we don't have to deal with the fact that we couldn't stop it. As much as I wish I could go back to the team and just walk out of here, I can't leave until there is no longer a threat. Tony notices my hesitation. The billionaire takes a deep breath and steps inside the room, beckoning for me to follow. Without another thought I take my place beside him and we search for the bomb. It only takes a minute to spot it. The device is anchored to the wall beside the minibar (Tony's favorite aspect of the room) and, just like Nat said, it doesn't have any obvious ways to disarm it. The two of us make our way to the wall and begin inspecting the device. It's about six inches long and four inches long with a gold like metal covering most of its surface. There's a small one by two rectangle in the center that has the number sixty-three digitally displayed on it. I reach out and place my hand on the metal casing and it's cool to the touch. Tony does the same, unsure of how to precede. I run my fingers around the edge in between the bomb and the wall checking for any weak spots that I could use to remove it. Finding none, I turn to Tony.

"Where do we start, Stark?" He examines it for a moment longer and takes a step back before replying.

"The exterior is made of some sort of metal that has the appearance of gold but it's not gold. I'm not sure what the numbers are for, a timer maybe or some sort of indicator. Somehow it's anchored itself into the foundation of the building so there's no way of getting it out of the wall without demolishing most of the framework and we couldn't do that without taking down the entire structure. I can't cut through it because the only way to do that is with a laser and it could set off the bomb." He pauses and his face lights up. "But if I could just cut enough of the edge off to get a look inside I might be able to find a way to disarm it. The only problem is I don't know the layout of it and I could accidentally hit a wire or the explosive itself which would also cause the bomb to go off."

"Do you have any ideas that won't set it off and kill us?" I say sarcastically. He frowns.

"Not really no. But hey what's life without a little risk right?" He throws me his classic Stark smile and I scoff.

"One of these days you're gonna get yourself killed." I say only half joking. He seems not to notice and quickly sets to work modifying one of the repulsers from his armor so that its beam is now a pinpoint like that of a laser. I take a step toward the device and examine it again. I decide to search for any weak spots in the casing and I extend my right hand. The second my palm touches the surface a searing pain rips through my hand. A yell escapes me and I jerk the appendage away. I turn the effected area palm up so I can see the cause of my discomfort. The skin just below my fingers is an angry red with small blisters littering the area. Tony comes over to me to look at the damage. He grimaces when he sees the injury. I glance over at the bomb and see that the numbers have changed. Instead of saying sixty-three it now reads one hundred forty-one.

"Tony, the numbers are different." He gives me a questioning look before he understands. He looks back at the device and checks it over. At first it seems like he's stumped. Suddenly he whirls back to me.

"Clint, let me see your hand." I extend my arm and he takes it in his hands, careful not to touch the injured skin. He looks at it for a minute before nodding his head. "Just as I thought. The numbers in the center aren't a timer, it's the temperature. The temperature that causes second degree burns is one hundred thirty-one degrees. That wound on your hand, my friend, is a second degree burn." His eyes widen. "It's a heat triggered bomb! I heard about these back when I was still manufacturing weapons. There was a group of scientists that developed a bomb that could be preset to a certain temperature and it would slowly heat up. It would start off slow but the hotter it gets, the faster it begins to heat up. Once it hits the preset temperature it will explode, causing a massive blast. Every one of the bombs has the same preset, if only I could remember what it was." He squeezes his eyes shut in concentration. "Three hundred eighteen degrees!" He suddenly exclaims. I look at the indicator and it reads one hundred eighty-six. If what Stark says is right it won't be too much longer before it reaches that number.

"How long before it heats up enough?" He bites his lip and I can see the gears turning. After a few more seconds of calculation he gives his answer.

"Twenty-two minutes." I nod. "But when it does blow it will put everyone inside the Tower and the civilians on the street outside's lives in danger. It could be fatal to anyone within two hundred yards of a single bomb but if there are any more of them it would cover a much greater area. So we have no choice but to attempt to disarm it." I shrug my shoulders.

"Ok so let's do it." His grim expression causes me to frown.

"Unfortunately the only way to disarm it is to use the laser."

"So?" I ask, confused.

"So if we use the laser it will heat up the device quicker causing our timetable to move up. As in cutting our time down exponentially." I nod in understanding.

"How much are talking? A few minutes?" He shakes his head.

"If would cut it down to less than half. The second the laser touches the bomb, you only have six minutes to disarm it. And you wouldn't even know what the interior looks like until you have cut the edge off, leaving you even less time. And the others wouldn't even know that they were running out of time."

"So one of us would have to disable the bomb while the other goes and gets the rest of the team out in case they fail."

"Precisely." Iron Man nods at me.

"Ok so you get everyone out while I disable the bomb." The look on the genius's face was almost comical.

"What? What do you mean while you disable the bomb? I'm taking care of the bomb, you go get the others."

"No way, Tony. You'll get there way faster than I'd be able to with your suit and I have more experience in this area than you do. So quit arguing with me and get moving before I shoot you with an arrow." He reluctantly nods and hands me the makeshift laser. He makes a move to leave but my voice stops him. "Tony." He turn to face me.

"Yeah Clint?" I take a deep breath.

"When you get everyone out, do NOT come back for me. I'm not about to let you put yourself in danger." He's about to protest but I cut him off. "And you keep Nat and Steve outside too. Whatever you do, do not let Nat come get me no matter what."

"No way! I'm not just gonna sit there and hope you can make it out on your own. You're insane! I'm not leaving you!" He is about to continue when I butt in.

"Yes you are, Tony!" The man flinches at my tone. "You are going to save the others and keep them outside." Everything is silent for a minute and Tony walks to the door. He's nearly out when I speak up. "And Tony, I want you to promise me something." He turns back to me.

"Anything."

"Promise me that if I don't make it out in time that you'll keep Nat safe. Don't let her cut herself off. She needs you guys, even if she doesn't know it. Let her know that she's more than the red in her ledger. Promise me you'll take care of her." His lips draw into a tight line.

"I promise." And with that he takes off flying down the hall. I take a deep breath and turn towards the bomb. I pick up the repulser and check the temperature. Two hundred ten degrees. My hands shake as I position the laser. With one last breath I switch it on and press it against the metal. Instantly the temp begins to climb and it's soon at two twenty. I begin counting the time in my head. I carefully cut off one side of the bomb and look inside. There are a bunch of wires branching out from what I'm guessing is the core and connecting to the outside. I slowly and carefully reach inside, careful not to touch the casing, before grabbing the first wire. With as much precision as I can muster I snip it in half. Much to my relief it doesn't blow up in my face. I let out a shaky breath before continuing. Soon I have the first six wires cut. Four minutes left. After the seventh wire I realize with relief that I might be able to disarm the bomb in time. My relief is short lived, however, as an arrow suddenly embeds itself in my thigh. A shout of pain escapes me and my leg buckles, causing me to fall to the ground. I look over and see none other than Trickshot standing in the doorway, bow drawn. I aim the laser at him but a well placed shot has it fizzling and useless. With a little effort I throw myself behind the mini bar and take a defensive position. I reach back to grab my bow and arrows only to realize that the arrows had fallen off my back when I dove. My whips around in search of the projectiles and I finally spot them lying on the floor. Right next to Trickshot, I just have the worst luck. I look around for anything else to use when my eyes land on the arrow in my thigh. With a grimace I reach down and pull it out before loading it into my bow. Without hesitation I leap out from behind my cover and line up my shot. The arrow whizzes through the air and sticks right into my attackers shoulder. He howls and shoots another at me but misses by a mile. A foul smell reaches my nostrils and I glance towards the bomb. The display showed two hundred ninety degrees and it was rising fast. The heat was literally melting the paint off the wall. The temperature went up one degree each second and I knew I had to make my escape. My moment of distraction gave Trickshot an opening and another arrow embedded itself in my abdomen. I muffled a shout of pain and lined up another shot with the arrow he had missed with. Just as I released it the man was engulfed in green magic and he just disappeared into thin air. With dread I glanced over at the explosive again. Three hundred ten degrees. Panic filled me and I immediately tried to stand but my wounds made it difficult. When I finally got to my feet it was three hundred fifteen degrees. I loaded an arrow and shot it at the window, shattering it. My weak legs carried me through the hole and out into the open sky. I fell a good hundred yards down and was about to loose a grappling arrow when the bomb went off. Then everything went black.

* * *

Six minutes...

Iron man flew through the halls in search of his team mates.

Five...

He located the other Avengers and lead them down the stairs.

Four...

The avengers exited the building.

Three...

They cleared the civilians.

Two...

Black Widow noticed Hawkeye was missing.

One...

Natasha ran towards the building to save her partner.

Zero...

The building exploded. Sending them reeling backwards. Hawkeye was nowhere in sight.

Ten seconds later...

Steve sees someone falling through the air by the building.

Five seconds after that...

Hulk leaps through the air and catches Hawkeye.

Ten seconds longer...

Hawkeye is lying on the ground, unmoving

Half a second later...

Black Widow is holding him in her lap.

One hour later...

The Avengers sit in the waiting room of a S.H.I.E.L.D base while Hawkeye is fighting for his life in surgery.

Four hours later...

The doctor came to give them the news on his condition.

* * *

 _A/N well that's chapter six! Just so you know, I have no idea if there is really such thing as a heat triggered bomb it just sounded really cool in my head._


	7. Chapter 7

_A/N thank you to everyone who has taken the time to read this story! Disclaimer: I own nothing._

* * *

Chapter Seven: Black Widow

The waiting room was eerily quite as the five remaining Avengers sat in the chairs waiting for news on their resident archer. Steve had his cowl down and was gripping his shield with white knuckles, his head resting on top of his hands. Bruce had his knees pulled up to his chest, trying to contain his anger in fear that the "other guy" might make an unexpected appearance. Thor had Mjolnir hanging limply at his side with his cape discarded on the floor, Clint's blood covering the once pristine fabric. Tony was fiddling with a paper clip that he'd found on the floor in an effort to draw his mind away from his wounded friend. Natasha sat with her back to the wall staring intensely at the doors that lay between her and her partner, waiting for the doctor to come out and say he'll be just fine. That he'll be back to cracking jokes and teasing her in no time. She refuses to think about the other option. She will not let him die, if he dies she'll bring him back to life and kill him herself. She hears a door open and is about to ask how he is when she realizes that it's the wrong door. Pepper Potts is entering the room along with Jane Foster. The women stop short when they see the Avengers' broken state. Their eyes are red and puffy from tears, both of them had become fond of the archer. It only takes a moment for Tony and Thor to stand and make their way to the two girls. There's a few seconds of silence before Pepper's quiet voice asks the question weighing on everyone's minds.

"How is he?" Tony opens his mouth to speak but nothing comes out. It's at that exact moment that the doors swing open and a doctor comes cautiously down the hallway. The S.H.I.E.L.D employee takes one look at the Avengers and nods. Natasha is at his side in a flash and immediately asks about her partner's condition.

"Barton had a significant amount of damage from the explosion. Luckily he had fallen far enough when the building exploded that it wasn't fatal, barely. He has multiple lacerations on his hands and a second degree burn on his right palm. Six of his ribs are broken, one of which nearly punctured his left lung. There are two puncture wounds caused by arrows in his right thigh and abdomen which caused internal bleeding and barely missed an artery. He a mild concussion caused by a wound on the back of his head along with blood loss. His right ankle is fractured and his knee is sprained. The ring and middle fingers on his left hand are broken and he strained most of the muscles in his shoulder. We did all we could but it's out of our hands now. He'll either wake up or he won't." He's met with silence as the Avengers try to process all the information they'd just been given. Natasha is the first to speak.

"Can we see him?"

"Yes. This way." He leads them down a series of hallways, Natasha memorized every turn, and they're soon standing outside Clint's hospital room. Natasha makes a move to open the door but hesitates. Steve puts a hand on her shoulder and she manages the smallest of smiles before pushing open the door and stepping inside. Her heart clenches when she sees her partner. The usually energetic archer looks lifeless and pale lying in the hospital bed. There is gauze covering his hands and the back of his head. His bare chest is littered with bruises and thick bandages are wrapped around his stomach. There's a splint on two of his fingers along with his right ankle and his left arm is in a sling. The Avengers stand in shock wondering how they could've let this happen to their archer.

* * *

Natasha's POV (A/N sorry it didn't start off as her POV, but I really wanted to add that third person part. )

I slowly walk to Clint's bedside, the initial shock has worn off, and sit down in the chair next to him. My body is numb as I can do nothing but stare at the broken man in front of me. The others cautiously make their way to my side and gather around our friend. They're all stunned into silence. I look down. I've never seen him look so vulnerable, so small. Sure I've seen him injured plenty of times, but today it's different. This wasn't some bad guy who got off a lucky shot or an accident during a mission, this was something none of could control. None of us could stop it. No one speaks this out loud of course, we all just stay rooted to the ground unsure of what to do. We remain this way for what seems like forever and by the time I actually look at the clock, it's two a.m. No one has moved since we first came into the room and I can tell that they're getting restless.

Bruce is the first to leave, mumbling something about letting off steam before he turns into a giant green rage monster. He's followed soon after by Tony and Thor, neither saying a word. Steve is the last to exit. He takes a step towards the door before turning to me.

"He'll be fine Natasha." With that he turns around and walks out into the hallway. I'm left alone in the dark room with my partner. With everyone gone I feel comfortable enough to reach out and grab his hand, carefully not to aggravate his injuries. I take a shuddering breath and reach out to wipe a speck of dirt off his face. He looks peaceful despite all of his wounds. I move to brush a piece of fiery red hair out of my face and I see that my hand's shaking. A sigh escapes me and I ball my hand into a fist, trying to stop the shaking. My efforts only make it worse and soon my whole body is trembling. I stand from the chair fully intending on going to the bathroom and pulling myself together, but my legs buckle and I sink to my knees. My arms wrap around my midsection and I stare down at the floor.

"Get it together Romanoff. You are not a child." I whisper harshly to myself. The words only succeed in making me feel weaker and I let out a frustrated sigh. I lift my trembling self to my feet and shakily walk back to Barton's side. With a cry I drop down into the chair and bang my fist down on the dresser in anger. "Why did you do this?! Why did you make me care about you and then go pull that hero crap?!" I jump to my feet and run a hand through my hair. My hands ball into fists and I grab my head in my hands. Without realizing it my fists goes flying towards the wall, it's hits it hard enough to hurt but not hard enough to break anything. A frustrated sob escapes me and I squeeze my eyes shut. "No Natasha. You will not cry over this!" But my command dies in my throat as a tear slides down my cheek. The liquid feels foreign against my skin from the years I've spent avoiding emotion. I fall back down into the chair and grab my partner's hand. Another sob escapes me and I lay my head down next to him on the bed. It's then that I realize that I can't lose the man next to me. "Why couldn't you just of gone with Tony? Why couldn't you just come back?" I whisper weakly. "Why couldn't I save you? It should've been me. I never should've let you go alone." The tears are streaming down my cheeks. "Don't leave me, Clint. Please, you're all I've got left. Don't leave me alone." I stay this way with my head on his bed for a long time, waiting for him to wake up. His eyes never open no matter how much I want them to.

* * *

The Black Widow never cries.

She didn't cry in the Red Room.

She didn't cry after the graduation ceremony.

She didn't shed a tear when she was tortured during that mission in Morocco.

She didn't cry in Budapest.

She didn't cry when Barton was compromised.

She didn't cry when she fought Clint when he was under Loki's control.

She didn't weep when they lost Coulson.

She didn't cry after the battle of New York.

She didn't cry when she realized she was a broken woman.

She didn't sob on the way to the hospital.

She didn't cry in the waiting room.

The Black Widow doesn't cry but ,now, sitting by her partner's bedside with only the sound of his heart monitor echoing through the empty room, Natasha Romanoff cries. She cries because she couldn't save him. She cries because he wouldn't let her try to. She sobs because she still owes him a debt. She cries because there's still red in her ledger. She cries because he's the one who saved her from herself. She weeps because she misses his smile. She cries because she may never see his smile again. She cries because her partner is the only person in this world that she trusts with everything. She cries because Clint Barton is the first one to treat her like she was human. She lets her tears fall because he is the only one who got past the walls she built around herself. She cries because Hawkeye is the one person who can keep her grounded. She cries because she needs him. Yes the Black Widow never cries, but today she is Natasha Romanoff. A normal woman who holds the world on her shoulders. A normal woman who can only take so much. A woman who is moments away from breaking. All because an ex-carney named Clint Barton wiggled his way into her heart.

* * *

 _A/N well that's chapter seven! Sorry if it's a little short. The next chapter will show what all the other Avengers did when they left the room and what they do to cope with their current situation_


	8. Chapter 8

_A/N thank you for taking the time to read this story! Disclaimer: I own nothing._

 _Pas I said in the last chapter this chapter will show what all the avengers did when they left the room and their reactions to Clint being hurt. I hope you like it._

* * *

Chapter Eight:

Steve's POV

I've just left Clint's room and I'm on my way to Avengers sleeping quarters located on the South end of the base, S.H.I.E.L.D created them after they got tired of the team members who weren't injured spending the night sleeping on the floor in the hallway just outside the injured team mate's room. When I arrive I slowly open the door to make sure no one else is there. When I'm sure I'm alone I lie down on the bed and close my eyes. I toss and turn for about half an hour but sleep still doesn't come. Frustrated, I walk out and roam the halls. My feet lead me to the gym and I make my way inside, knowing just what to do to get my frustration taken care of. I grab a wrap off a shelf and quickly wind it around my hands before making my way to the punching bag. The familiarity of it all comforts me slightly. I throw a quick jab, testing out the bag. Satisfied I let loose a right hook followed by an uppercut. I start off slow and gradually speed up my hits. Suddenly I imagine Clint lying in the hospital bed and anger boils in me. Anger at myself for not realizes he was still inside. Anger at Loki for attacking him. Anger at Trickshot for shooting him. Anger at Hawkeye himself for not getting out there. Soon all I can feel is anger. It consumes me and I'm seeing red as my fists connect over and over with the rough fabric. I can't lose another team mate. I see Bucky falling from the train back in the war. I see Clint after escaping Loki's mind control. I see him taking down Chitauri in New York. I see him cracking jokes with Stark. My hands move with terrifying speed as I think of the man currently fighting for his life in a hospital bed across the base. With one final hit the bag goes flying across the room and my body is shaking from exhaustion. I drop to my knees, breathing hard, and rub a hand down my face. Without thinking I begin unwrapping my hands, revealing the bruises across my knuckles that will heal in a few hours due to the super soldier serum. A shuddering sigh escapes me and I close my eyes, wondering if Clint will ever wake up.

* * *

Bruce's POV

The halls are eerily quiet as I roam the base in search of something, anything that will calm the rage within me. I don't have to worry about agents confronting me, anyone who I come across avoids making any contact in fear of unleashing the other guy. The other guy, hmmph, it doesn't have the same meaning as it used to. After all "it's still the same person, just one has some serious anger issues." My heart clenches at the thought of the words Clint used to describe the Hulk. That's what I liked best about the archer. He didn't see me as some ticking time bomb that could explode any second, he saw me as a regular guy with some control issues. Barton always tried to make me see the good things about the other guy and kept me from dwelling on the bad.

"It's not about your mess ups or mistakes, it's about how you use those mistakes to make yourself better." He had told me that one day after a mission in Russia where I'd lost control. No one was hurt but I nearly trampled a village, and that was something that I didn't take lightly. Clint was actually the person who came up with the idea to use the lullaby but Natasha took up the role to actually do it. She said it would probably get a better reaction from her since the Hulk was generally calmer around her anyway. Then my thoughts shift to his current position and I can feel the anger begin to bubble up. I squeeze my eyes shut and take a few deep breaths. I'm shaken from my attempts when I come up to a window. The glass goes from the floor to the ceiling and I can see nearly the entire night sky. Billions of stars adorn the blackness that had never been visible from the brightly lit Avengers Tower. The sight calms me almost instantly and I sit down on the floor, my knees barely brushing the glass. I can feel the anger slipping away as I gaze at the sight before me and I have no intentions of leaving anytime soon.

* * *

Tony's POV

My fingers fly across the keyboard as I stare bleary eyed at the screen in front of me. On display on the monitor is a map showing any spikes in magical activity across the globe. Hammer and the others could be anywhere, if they're even still on earth, with the help of Loki's magical abilities. My shoulders slump as I come up empty for the fourth time in a row in the past hour. Rage fills me and with a loud crash the keyboard goes flying across the room before coming to an abrupt stop after it hits the wall. I bang my hand down on the counter and turn away from the computer in disgust. If I had the technology available that I had back at the Tower I would've found them ages ago, or at least that's what I'm telling myself. The door behind me opens and I whirl around to face the intruder. I sigh when I see who it is. Pepper slowly makes her way over to me and puts a hand on my shoulder.

"Tony you need to take a break. You've been at this for hours. Goto bed and you can come back and finish this tomorrow." I shrug her hand off and shake my head.

"No I can't. They'll be gone by then. I have to do this now. If I can just pinpoint Loki's magical signature then maybe I can use it to track his movements and we can end this."

Pepper shakes her head.

"Tony you need to stop. You're gonna wear yourself out and you'll be no use in stopping them if you run yourself into the ground before we locate them."

"Pep I..."

"No. You need to stop and rest. Now." She wraps me up in a hug and I return the gesture. My breath hitches and she pulls away to look at me. "What's wrong?" I shake my head.

"I never should've left him alone. I never should've let him try and disarm the bomb. I knew that the bad guys were still out there looking for us and I just left him. I should've been the one to try and disarm the bomb not him and I never should've let him convince me otherwise. If I had just stayed with him maybe he wouldn't be in a hospital bed right now. Maybe he..." I run a hand through my hair. "It's all my fault, Pep. It's my fault he got hurt." She looks like she's seconds away from smacking me.

"Anthony Edward Stark don't you dare say that! Clint made his choice and there was nothing you could do to change that! He is just as stubborn and pigheaded as you and you of all people should know that! So don't you think for one second that any of this is even remotely your fault." I reluctantly nod and lean my head on her shoulder.

"Oh, Pep, what're we gonna do?"

* * *

Thor's POV

A cold breeze blows across my face as I stand on the roof of the S.H.I.E.L.D base where Barton is being kept. The moon casts a gloomy shadow across the area and it matches my somber mood. My grip tightens around Mjolnir like a vice and I contemplate summoning Heimdall and the Bifrost but I hesitate. I've realized that many problems that I face on Midguard do not have to be dealt with on Asguard in the company of my people and today's is one of those occasions. I consider Barton a friend, a warrior, and it pains me to see the normally strong willed archer in a place of such weakness. Mortals' lives are more fragile than that of an Asguardian, one good hit can usually send them shattering into a million pieces. But Hawkeye is different, he has endured more trials than anyone, immortal and not, I've ever made acquaintances with. He has the heart of a warrior and the strength of a thousand men. The man has been beaten down and unmade more times than I'd ever care to experience and yet he still manages to remain himself. A good man of character and strong will. There is an unbreakable spirit residing inside the mortal that rivals that of most Asguardians. One that refuses to be beaten or destroyed. There's a fire raging inside of him that can not be dimmed. He more than a mere man, he is a force to be reckoned with. I thought him unstoppable and it startles me to see just how far one has to go to truly understand that even warriors can be broken. I do not know how one person can take so much and yet still continue to act as if he has experienced no indecencies, that he has felt no pain. I used to think humans were weak, that they could never take the kind of physical and emotional trials that can be endured by an Asguardian, Clint Barton has showed me the error in my judgement. And never have I been happier to be proven wrong. Hawkeye is no ordinary man, he is an Avenger and I will never forget that.

* * *

While the rest of the Avengers are scattered across the base, each dealing with the situation in their own way, Natasha never leaves Clint's side. Perhaps that's why, after nearly six days of worrying, she is the first person to see when he finally opens his eyes.

* * *

 _A/N well that's chapter eight. I hope you enjoyed it and I'm sorry if it's a little short._


	9. Chapter 9

_A/N thank you to everyone who is taking the time to read this story! This is the LAST CHAPTER! Disclaimer: I own nothing._

* * *

Chapter Nine: Hawkeye

Light. That's the first thing I notice when I start to come to. The bright lights and overwhelming scent of antiseptic are one of the main reasons that I hate hospitals. I don't just hate hospitals, I hate them with a passion. Like a "I would rather deal with a raging Hulk and a sleep deprived Natasha than be here" kind of passion. My mind is groggy and it takes me a moment to remember why I'm there this time. Crazed criminal masterminds and explosions. Right. Got it. I hear movement to my left and I open my bleary eyes to see none other than Natasha sitting with her head propped up on her elbows. When she sees me she smiles.

"Decided to join the land of the living huh?" She says leaning towards me. I open my mouth to shoot back a witty retort but my mouth feels like it's filled with cotton balls and my tongue refuses to cooperate. My comeback comes out in a garbled mess that's sound nothing like it was intended to and she smiles. I try again with the same result and she tries to get me to stop attempting to talk. I'm too stubborn to listen and I enjoy annoying her so I continue anyway. "Would you just shut up?" When I don't comply with her demands, she jumps up and kisses me and I don't even have time to react before she pulls away. I stare at her wide eyed and she laughs. Yes the Black Widow laughed, I seem to have that effect on her sometimes. Then her face takes on a serious expression. "If you ever pull anything like that again, physical therapy is gonna be the least of your worries. Got it?" I nod which turns out to be a very bad idea because a jab of pain shoots through my skull and I groan. I make a mental note not to do that again anytime soon. My eyes roam over my body taking stock of all my injuries. All I see is bandages. Everywhere. They're on my hands, my stomach, my leg, my head, and there's some on my arms. I reach down to touch the wrap on my stomach but stop short when I see the splint on my fingers. Ok so those are broken, great. My vision swims a little bit and my eyelids are starting to get heavy. Natasha places her hand on my I damaged shoulder.

"Get some sleep Hawk." I gladly comply and I'm soon fast asleep.

* * *

The next time I wake up all of the Avengers along with Pepper, Jane, and Coulson (A/N in this story all of them have already learned that Phil isn't dead). As soon as I open my eyes I'm bombarded by questions. There's so much chatter that I honestly don't even know what's being said and I'm extremely thankful when Natasha speaks up.

"Hey! Everybody take a breath! Give him a minute to actually wake up and try to ask you questions ONE AT A TIME." Everyone immediately stops talking, no one wants to know what would happen if they make the Black Widow angry. After a minute of silence I've collected my thoughts enough to hold a coherent conversation. Cap is the first to speak.

"How are you feeling?" I open my mouth and am relieved when words actually come out instead of a garbled mess, even if my voice sounds like I swallowed a bunch of rocks.

"I'm good. The doc gave me the good stuff so I really can't feel much pain right now." This elicits a smile from super soldier.

"Good." Tony is the next to add to the conversation.

"Don't worry about getting bored while you're in here because someone, that someone being me, brought you something for you to mess around with until you get out of here." He reaches into a bag that he's holding and pulls out a dart board and some of the projectiles that go with it. The billionaire sets the darts on the bedside table and then proceeds to hang the board on the wall opposite of my bed. Before anyone else can add anything I ask a question.

"How long before I can leave?" Natasha is the one to answer.

"The dr. said that they wanna keep you for another few days and then you can come back."

"Come back where? The Tower kinda got blown up and I don't own an apartment or anything." This puzzles the Avengers for a moment, apparently they had t thought about that part. Coulson saves the day.

"There is a safe house about twenty miles from here that we had built in case the Avengers Tower was ever destroyed, it was my idea by the way. We knew one day that having a Hulk, Asguardian, two master assassins, Tony Stark, and a super soldier may cause some property damage. It's not quite as big as the Tower but it's close. It's got a firing range, a lab, a gym, a pool, and there's a nice big dirt spot where Thor can use the Bifrost without us having to do any lawn care afterwards. Y'all are welcome to stay there as long as you like until the Tower is up and running again."

"Thanks Phil." I say through a yawn. This draws a few looks from my fellow Avengers.

"I think it's time we let Hawkeye get some sleep." Steve says.

"But I'm not even tired." Even as I say this my eyes are closing. Soon after the room is filled with quiet snoring.

* * *

I spend a couple more days in the hospital before the doc says I can leave. Unfortunately I am confined to a wheelchair until further notice because of my fractured ankle, apparently crutches weren't an option. Phil drives me to the safe house where the other Avengers are waiting and spend the entire car ride fidgeting around because I'm finally able to move around. For someone who's constantly on the move, being confined to a bed for even just a few days is torture. When we pull up to the house Natasha comes out and helps me get my wheelchair out of the car, completely ignoring my protests that I can do it on my own. She even goes as far as pushing the wheelchair for me like I'm a child. By the time we get in the house my arms are crossed and I refuse to look at her, which she just laughs at calling me childish. When Stark sees my annoyance he can't help but comment.

"Hawkeye does not look amused." I roll my eyes and give him the finger. He fakes mock surprise. "Now Clint you know that we have to be careful with that stuff around Steve, he may get a little upset." At this last comment Steve let's out an exasperated sigh.

"You're never gonna let me love that down are you?" The billionaire just shoots the soldier a cocky smile.

"Nope." Natasha wheels me into the kitchen and the rest of my companions follow. We all sit down in chairs, well except for me, and catch up on anything I missed while in the hospital. Apparently Tony introduced Thor to poptarts and the Asguardian liked them so much that he sent Stark out to the store to buy like ten boxes, which were all gone by the next day. Steve finally learned how to properly use a cell phone and To y has been bombarding him with text messages ever since. I smile and continue listening to the stories told by my team mates until it's dark outside and everyone heads to bed. Maybe being here won't be such a bad thing.

* * *

EIGHT WEEKS LATER

I watch with satisfaction as the arrow hits the center of the bullseye. As does the next one. My injuries have finally just about healed up now, but I still can't stand on my ankle for too long. They removed the casts from my fingers and ankle about two weeks ago and I was able to start walking around even if it was just for short periods of time. My ribs no longer give me trouble breathing as they had in the beginning and the puncture wound in my stomach is finally nothing more than a scar to add to the list of old injuries that I have. The cuts and burns on my hands have all but disappeared and two weeks ago I was finally allowed to shoot my bow again and I haven't stopped since then. I'm in the range every day with Natasha and nothing could make me happier. I let another arrow fly and it splits the previous one down the middle.

"Nice shot, Clint." Natasha's voice fills the room.

"I never miss." I say teasingly.

"Everything's just about healed up. You'll be good as new in no time." I nod and take a seat on the bench, my ankle was starting to protest. She sits down next to me.

"Do you think we'll ever find them?" Her face hardens and I know she knows exactly who I'm talking about.

"I promise, Clint, we will find Loki and Trickshot and everyone else who are responsible for all of this and we will end this." I nod and she places her hand on my leg. We stay this way in comfortable silence for a few minutes when the door busts open and Bruce comes bursting in. There's a urgent look in his eyes and he's breathing hard like he'd been running. As if he'd heard they're entire previous conversation he gives the news.

"It's Tony. He found them." He says between gasps. With that simple sentence the three Avengers take off sprinting towards Tony's lab to find out where their enemies have been hiding all this time.

* * *

 _A/N ooh cliffhanger. There WILL be a sequel eventually, but I don't know when. Thank you to everyone who has taken the time to read the story and I hope you will also read the sequel when it is written. Bye for now_


	10. Chapter 10

**Hey guys! I just wanted to let you know that I have started writing the sequel to this story and the first chapter is up. The sequel is called Cold As Ice, be sure to take a look.**


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